Pharma-Sponsored Mobile Health Gaming Apps Sanofi’s Mission T1D for Children with Type 1 DiabetesCheck Out Business Podcasts at Blog Talk Radio with Pharmaguy on BlogTalkRadioYou can also visit this Pharma Marketing Talk Segment Page to listen to the archived audio podcast. This show and ALL Pharma Marketing Talk shows are available as podcasts via PMT on iTunes (FREE!).

BackgroundThe new Mission T1D app, created by Sanofi Diabetes to address the need for greater understanding of Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) amongst children, parents and carers, friends and in the school environment is now available, free of charge, from the Apple UK store.

T1D affects 400,000 people in the UK and more than 29,000 are children. Educating people who share the lives of children with T1D is essential to ensure the needs of the child are properly understood and appropriately supported in their daily life.

Figures show that 94.2% of infants, children and young people with diabetes do not receive all of the care processes recommended by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE), suggesting that there is more work to be done to drive improvements. Mission T1D aims to improve the understanding of living with diabetes and helps to share practical information to better support children with diabetes, especially in their school environment.

Dr. Sheridan Waldron, Specialist Diabetes Dietician, says, “Children with diabetes and their families face many challenges in their daily lives as they care for a very complex life-long condition. It is essential that children, parents and carers have the knowledge and skills to manage diabetes but they also need their friends, teachers and other people in the school environment to understand and support them to care for their diabetes effectively. Sharing information and fostering a caring environment at school will help children with diabetes to feel normal, happy and ensure that they reach their full potential in a safe environment.”

The Mission T1D is a fun, innovative game, which takes place in a school setting and features educational messages adapted for primary school-age children. It aims to support a serious message through gaming and play to encourage children with T1D (and their family, teachers and friends) to learn more about how to live with diabetes.

Players make their way through a number of levels by earning points and each level provides short, practical and illustrated messages on living with T1D at school. The game also includes a number of educational videos to reinforce key topics.

Questions/Topics of Discussion

Please tell us more about Mission T1D; specifically describe the game, how it is meant to be played, by whom and in what settings.

Is Mission T1D an example of what is often called “gamification?” In general, what role do you see for “gamification” in pharma promotion and patient support?

Obviously, this is an educational game. How do you incorporate education into the game. How do you ensure that kids will not abandon the game if it is “too educational” and not fun?

This is not the first diabetes mobile app created by Sanofi Diabetes for kids in the UK. What is the value proposition for Sanofi to develop these apps?

Are there plans to introduce this game to the U.S. market?

Guest Bio

Becky Reeve has been the Head of Professional Relations at Sanofi Diabetes since January, 2011.

In this role Becky partners with and supports a number of patient organizations such as DUK, DRWF and JDRF and also works alongside a number of diabetes key thought leaders and professional groups such as BSPED, ACDC, PCDS, ABCD and TREND to ensure sanofi are seen as the people to come to first.

Becky has a keen interest in how the Diabetes Online Community (#DOC) supports people with diabetes and their families and has been actively working hard to share this with health care professionals so that more people can be signposted to this support. Due to her involvement with the development and support of Monster Manor — a free gamification app for children with Type 1 diabetes — Becky has developed a keen interest in how gamification can support people with diabetes.

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